Coaches
Head Coach Mike Dunn
Photo and bio coming soon!
Coach Martyn Holgate
Martyn grew up in England until his late teens. After a few years in the South of France and Spain, he relocated to Northern California and lived in Marin County, known by many as the home of mountain biking. The sport was established on Mt Tamalpais, starting on basic converted rigid cruisers and evolved into true mountain bike technology. Martyn and family now reside in Austin, with the multitude of outdoor options available. It is truly a playground for recreation and exploration!
Martyn has a wealth of experience coaching youth sports including soccer from under 6s all the way to competitive high school teams. He was voted coach of the year for his division in 2013. The outdoors is a top priority for Martyn, a mountain bike enthusiast, lifelong soccer player, skier, camper and an avid sailor. However, his biggest sporting accomplishments have come on two wheels. He is a multi-year Motorcycle Trials champion in the regional expert class and a frequent National Moto-trials competitor. The off-road motorcycle experience translates very well to his mountain bike skills (except for the pedaling part) along with being a proficient mechanic.
Martyn’s priority is to be outside enjoying the fresh air with his wife and two sons, who are both student athletes on the Westlake team. Martyn heads up the coaching crew and looks forward to helping team athletes get the most out of their team experience, discovering and developing new skills and comradery whilst most importantly having a lot of fun and making some great memories.
Coach Susan Kemppainen
Susan has enjoyed camping, hiking, running, and playing outdoors from an early age, and even ran cross country many years ago at Westlake High School. After being introduced to mountain biking by a roommate in North Carolina in 1993, she immediately fell under the spell of riding in the beautiful pine forests of central NC. She and Jon went mountain biking on their first date, and years later, got their children hooked on this life-long sport, too.
Since the Kemppainens inherited the team in 2016, Susan’s main mission has been to get the word out in the Westlake community that there is a mountain bike team. It is her belief that there are a lot of students out there that would be a great fit for the Westlake Mountain Bike Team, but they don’t know about it. NICA is a welcoming, inclusive youth development organization with a mission of developing strong bodies, minds, and character. Mountain biking is perfect for youth who either haven’t found their sport, or are getting nudged out of a sport they have played for years by the exclusive, highly competitive nature of most middle and high school team sports. With Jon’s help coaching, they have been able to nurture and grow the team from 7-9 members during the first 6 years of participation in the Texas NICA league, to over 30 members, and growing! Now, her goal is to get more girls (and moms) on bikes!
Since she has been a physical therapist for over 30 years, coaching, teaching essential skills, and risk management/injury prevention come naturally to this PT/mom! Susan has acted as team director for over 7 years, has been NICA level 3 volunteer (head coach) certified for 7 years.
Coach Jon Kemppainen
Jon saved up and bought his “dream bike”, a 5-speed Schwinn stingray when he was 7. In addition to enjoying the freedom of riding, he became fascinated with understanding how bicycles worked, often taking them apart and rebuilding them.
His first mountain biking experiences were during college in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, when production bikes were first on the market. Back then, frames were heavy, wheels were 26”, handlebars were narrow, and brakes were unreliable. He quickly began to appreciate that mountain biking was a great way to challenge oneself mentally and physically, as well as experience the outdoors with others. When he ended up getting a job at the university, he commuted by bike for more than 10 years. This certainly helped him do well in his first mountain bike race in 1994.
When he and his wife Susan relocated to Austin, he immediately fell in love with the hill country. The two began to explore the central TX trails and began taking their children along.
Jon got much more serious about riding when his son started riding with the Westlake Mountain Bike Team in 2014. He was impressed by NICA’s emphasis on strong body, mind, and character, and use of a curriculum that enables young athletes to learn essential skills safely. After participating as a ride leader and learning from the previous Westlake coaches for 2 years, he became a level 3 head coach in 2017. Jon is proud to be part of an organization that is so inclusive, and excited to participate in a sport that he wishes was around when he was young.
When not coaching and riding his bike, he works as a scientist, and enjoys playing fiddle, saxophone, and guitar; occasionally going on tour with various bands. Having grown up at the beach, he also loves watersports, and is an experienced sailor and windsurfer.